2 Samuel 22 (New International Version)

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David's Song of Praise

 ³ my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,
       my shield and the horn ^[a] of my salvation.
       He is my stronghold, my refuge and my savior—
       from violent men you save me.

 ⁴ I call to the LORD, who is worthy of praise,
       and I am saved from my enemies.

 ⁵ "The waves of death swirled about me;
       the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me.

 ⁶ The cords of the grave ^[b] coiled around me;
       the snares of death confronted me.

 ⁷ In my distress I called to the LORD;
       I called out to my God.
       From his temple he heard my voice;
       my cry came to his ears.

 ⁸ "The earth trembled and quaked,
       the foundations of the heavens ^[c] shook;
       they trembled because he was angry.

 ⁹ Smoke rose from his nostrils;
       consuming fire came from his mouth,
       burning coals blazed out of it.

 ¹⁰ He parted the heavens and came down;
       dark clouds were under his feet.

 ¹¹ He mounted the cherubim and flew;
       he soared ^[d] on the wings of the wind.

 ¹² He made darkness his canopy around him—
       the dark ^[e] rain clouds of the sky.

 ¹³ Out of the brightness of his presence
       bolts of lightning blazed forth.

 ¹⁴ The LORD thundered from heaven;
       the voice of the Most High resounded.

 ¹⁵ He shot arrows and scattered the enemies ,
       bolts of lightning and routed them.

 ¹⁶ The valleys of the sea were exposed
       and the foundations of the earth laid bare
       at the rebuke of the LORD,
       at the blast of breath from his nostrils.

 ¹⁷ "He reached down from on high and took hold of me;
       he drew me out of deep waters.

 ¹⁸ He rescued me from my powerful enemy,
       from my foes, who were too strong for me.

 ¹⁹ They confronted me in the day of my disaster,
       but the LORD was my support.

 ²⁰ He brought me out into a spacious place;
       he rescued me because he delighted in me.

 ²¹ "The LORD has dealt with me according to my righteousness;
       according to the cleanness of my hands he has rewarded me.

 ²² For I have kept the ways of the LORD;
       I have not done evil by turning from my God.

 ²³ All his laws are before me;
       I have not turned away from his decrees.

 ²⁴ I have been blameless before him
       and have kept myself from sin.

 ²⁵ The LORD has rewarded me according to my righteousness,
       according to my cleanness ^[f] in his sight.

 ²⁶ "To the faithful you show yourself faithful,
       to the blameless you show yourself blameless,

 ²⁷ to the pure you show yourself pure,
       but to the crooked you show yourself shrewd.

 ²⁸ You save the humble,
       but your eyes are on the haughty to bring them low.

 ²⁹ You are my lamp, O LORD;
       the LORD turns my darkness into light.

 ³⁰ With your help I can advance against a troop ^[g] ;
       with my God I can scale a wall.

 ³¹ "As for God, his way is perfect;
       the word of the LORD is flawless.
       He is a shield
       for all who take refuge in him.

 ³² For who is God besides the LORD ?
       And who is the Rock except our God?

 ³³ It is God who arms me with strength ^[h]
       and makes my way perfect.

 ³⁴ He makes my feet like the feet of a deer;
       he enables me to stand on the heights.

 ³⁵ He trains my hands for battle;
       my arms can bend a bow of bronze.

 ³⁶ You give me your shield of victory;
       you stoop down to make me great.

 ³⁷ You broaden the path beneath me,
       so that my ankles do not turn.

 ³⁸ "I pursued my enemies and crushed them;
       I did not turn back till they were destroyed.

 ³⁹ I crushed them completely, and they could not rise;
       they fell beneath my feet.

 ⁴⁰ You armed me with strength for battle;
       you made my adversaries bow at my feet.

 ⁴¹ You made my enemies turn their backs in flight,
       and I destroyed my foes.

 ⁴² They cried for help, but there was no one to save them—
       to the LORD, but he did not answer.

 ⁴³ I beat them as fine as the dust of the earth;
       I pounded and trampled them like mud in the streets.

 ⁴⁴ "You have delivered me from the attacks of my people;
       you have preserved me as the head of nations.
       People I did not know are subject to me,

 ⁴⁵ and foreigners come cringing to me;
       as soon as they hear me, they obey me.

 ⁴⁶ They all lose heart;
       they come trembling ^[i] from their strongholds.

 ⁴⁷ "The LORD lives! Praise be to my Rock!
       Exalted be God, the Rock, my Savior!

 ⁴⁸ He is the God who avenges me,
       who puts the nations under me,

 ⁴⁹ who sets me free from my enemies.
       You exalted me above my foes;
       from violent men you rescued me.

 ⁵⁰ Therefore I will praise you, O LORD, among the nations;
       I will sing praises to your name.

 ⁵¹ He gives his king great victories;
       he shows unfailing kindness to his anointed,
       to David and his descendants forever."

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

TODAY'S WORD from Joel and Victoria

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